Nerdy Baby Names: 5 Fandom Friday
Participating in another 5 Fandom Friday this week (put together by my friends at The Nerdy Girlie and SuperSpaceChick). This week’s prompt is ‘Characters I would name my kids after.’ While I don’t plan on needing said names currently (perhaps in a couple years), I thought it would be a fun and geeky prompt to brainstorm on.
Before I jump into my list of 5, a couple of thoughts I think anyone should consider before giving their kid a fandom favorite name…
1. Will you (and your spouse) still be fans in years to come?
You don’t want to name your child after a beloved character or series only to fall out of love with that interest a couple years down the road. I’d say if you’ve been a fan for a minimum of 5-7 years (depending on how old you are), then it should be a safe bet that you’ll still be a fan by the time your kid moves out of the house. Besides, you don’t want to name your child after any old show or series….if you’re going that far with it, you want the series to be special and mean something to you, right?!
2. Remember, it’s your child’s name, not yours.
Your kid will have to live with this name for their lives (unless they want to go through the process of legally changing it); that includes all the associations and possible repercussions. What if they don’t end up being a fan? Don’t make is so out-there-unique and fandom specific that they’ll get picked on or resent you for the name if they don’t grow up to be obsessed too.
3. Not everyone will “get it.” Are you prepared to (or do you want to) always be explaining what your child’s name means?
Not everyone is a fan of the same things you are. Even with popular names from popular series there will be a vast majority of people who just don’t know or recognize it. In the same line of thinking, many won’t care or understand why your child’s name means “bold one” in Klingon.
4. Is the name easy to spell and pronounce?
Even if a child’s name isn’t the least bit nerdy, this one is still nice… How would an average person sound out and spell the name? Do they pronounce it vastly different from what you expect or how the fandom actually uses it?
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Photo credit: just nerd girl problems |
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So, referring back to 1, I have many series and fandoms I currently love. These include Supernatural, Firefly, Magic the Gathering, Star Wars, various anime (i.e. Attack on Titan & Sword Art Online), and many more. My list of nerd loves that truly pass the 7+ year test is a lot shorter though.(…especially since I immediately scratched off geek loves such as the Nintendo franchise because I can’t think of a single name that I feel would be appropriate for a child; sorry, not little Yoshi’s or baby Peach’s and I don’t care for Mario or Daisy as a name.) My 7+ year list, with viable name options, includes Lord of the Rings, Hayao Miyazaki’s animations, Ender’s Game, and Pokemon (1st generation). Unfortunately, most of the characters’ names in these series don’t exactly pass criteria 2, 3, and/or 4; so name options aren’t as plentiful as say, those of a fan of Doctor Who. Now that my preamble is done, I present to you my actual 5 Fandom Friday list of ‘Characters I’d Name My Kids After:’
Lord of the Rings
1. Laurelin
This is actually one of the 2 trees of Valinor that brought light to the land of the Valar in ancient times. When it was destroyed, its last fruit was made into the sun.
This name is a bit of a cheat since it’s not an actual character, just very Lord of the Rings fandom specific, but that’s okay ;-). While this name isn’t ‘normal’ per-say, I think it’s close enough that non-fandom lovers wouldn’t give it too much thought or question. I think it’s a pretty name and feel it passes the 4 tests. It also presents a couple nickname options too. (Lorien -short for the Elven woodland of Lothlorien- could also be a similar option.)
Photo credit lotr.wikia
2. Elanor
Refers to a little golden flower that blooms in the Elven land of Lothlorien. It means “sun-star” in Sindarin. In addition, hobbit-lasses are often named after flowers. On the suggestion of Frodo Baggins, Samwise named his first daughter, Elanor the Fair, after this flower.
What’s great about this name is that its nerd roots are very deep, but to outsiders they would just see it as a regular name; no explaining, no pronouncing, but lots of geek goodness.
Photo credit: middle-earth encyclopedia
3. Sam
Short for Samwise Gamgee, one of the members of the Fellowship of the Ring (also short for Samuel Winchester, one half of the hunting brother duo from Supernatural -one of my newer fandom loves).
I include this name on the list because it passes the 4 criteria I laid out, plus encompasses more than one fandom; sadly it’s not a name I like enough to probably give to any child I may have, but still a great option for others!
4. Mei
The younger sister of Satsuki. She is the first to discover Totoro.
This fandom was a bit harder. While I love many of the characters, most of my favorites have (of course) very Japanese-like names that would not pass criteria 4 here in America. The more Western names that do exist are names I’m not too partial towards; i.e. Karen or Anna. While Mei probably doesn’t pass criteria 4 either, I think it’s still a simple name that could potentially be used for a middle name.
Ender’s Game
5. Ender
Technically short for Andrew, this is the nickname of the main character in book 1 of the sci-fi series by Orson Scott Card.
I first read this book in 8th grade and still rate it among my top favorites. Due to my familiarity with it by now, perhaps I’ve become a bit jaded to its ‘unusual-ness,’ but I think this name could pass the 2nd and 3rd criteria as I don’t feel it is too out-there.
 Photo credit: fabuis maximus
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 Photo credit: games radar
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Erika
She’s the gym leader for the Celadon City Gym and specializes in grass-type pokemon. She often dresses in elegant kimonos and seems to represent ‘traditionally Japanese beauty.’
This name makes the list as an honorable mention because I have always loved the name Erika, I have a fascination with Asian cultures, and I still have a childhood love of Pokemon (1st gen.) -but the above listed fandoms are above this one on the love list.
Loved the fore-thought! Extremely important things to consider!
Thanks Meghan 🙂